Man jailed for throwing boiling water at woman who was kept in house as 'servant'

Carlton Julius has been jailed for GBH (Image: Gloucestershire Constabulary)

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After throwing boiling water in the face of a woman who was 'effectively a slave' and breaking her eye socket with a police-style baton, Carlton Julius posted a mocking video of her injuries on social media, a court heard yesterday.

Julius, 19, had put sugar and salt into the water to worsen the burns suffered by the woman in the horrific 'napalm' style attack, Gloucester Crown Court was told.

Pictures of the woman's vivid reddened face and bleeding eye were shown in court.

The woman, who is in her twenties, spent two weeks in hospital after the attack and has made a good recovery thanks to prompt treatment for her burns.

At the time of the attack, the prosecution said, she was being kept as a 'servant' in a house where she was being continually abused by residents and visitors.

But Judge Ian Lawrie QC said her plight went further than that and she "was effectively a slave in that household and subject to repeated mistreatment."

He said that the way Julius had mixed the water, sugar and salt showed he had a 'knowledge and calculation of napalm'. He was jailed for nine years.

Hit her with baton

Julius, of Thatcham Avenue, Kingsway, Gloucester, pleaded guilty to causing grievous bodily harm to the woman with intent by pouring boiling water over her on September 12 this year.

The prosecution said Julius also struck the woman in her face, fracturing her eye socket, with a police-style baton and he videoed her injured face as he spoke mockingly about her. He then posted the footage on social media.

Prosecutor Kenneth Bell said the woman, who was in her 20s, was living in 'an unusual domestic arrangement.'

She was 'effectively a servant' and was continually being abused by people using the house as a social base, he said.

“One of the regular visitors was Julius and in an unprovoked attack he filled a cup with boiling water and added sugar and salt to it and threw it in the face of this lady.

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“By the time the police arrived she had been squirrelled away by the social group and only returned when the officers had gone.

“She was then further abused by the group and mocked by Julius.

“Eventually the woman was taken to hospital, where she was treated and kept in for two weeks to enable her burns to begin healing," said Mr Bell.

“Thankfully due to the medical intervention she received high quality care and no permanent scarring can be seen.”

In a victim statement the woman said the incident had 'really scared' her and made her feel isolated in her home.

It has also made her feel vulnerable and anxious, she stated.

As a result of the unprovoked assault she cannot now go near a boiling kettle, she added.

'Unbelievable'

Sarah Jenkins, defending, said: “It is difficult to understand what was going on as there were other incidents going on at the same time.

“There had been a massive downward spiral in Julius' life with his increase in substance misuse. He was spending time in a toxic environment which for him had become ‘normal’.”

Judge Ian Lawrie QC said: “Elements of this debacle are unbelievable. After hurling boiling water at the victim he then attacks her with a baton and then mocks her on video and even posts the evidence on social media."

Julius began sobbing in the dock as the judge spoke.

Judge Lawrie went on: “You pleaded guilty to a Section 18 offence where you deliberately boiled water that contained sugar and salt and threw it in the face of a vulnerable young woman.

“You indulged, most likely under the influence of drink or drugs, in a contrived exercise of violence, as there was no good reason for behaving the way you did.

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“You purposely chose to throw hot water at her face and because of its contents it had the capacity to stick to the skin. Your actions showed a knowledge and calculation of napalm.

“Not content with that, you indulged in further humiliation by hitting her subsequent to the water incident. You compounded all of that by recording it and posting it on social media in further episodes of humiliation.

“You had little concern for the amount of harm you were causing.

“I’ve read the victim’s personal statement and by your actions you are going to have a long-lasting impact on her emotional and mental well being.

“You were part of the social group that met at the home where the assault took place. You would have been privy to the torture and humiliation that the woman suffered, even if you weren’t a participant.

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“You happily joined that group and indulged in whatever they were taking. The cruelty of your violence cannot be underestimated.

“I have seen the photographs of your victim’s injuries. But for the quality of care at the hospital she has happily recovered and has not been left with any permanent scarring.

“I am at a loss as to why you chose to join this social group, which had an influence over you, and you happily went along with the way they lived their lives.

“The woman was effectively a slave in that household and subject to repeated mistreatment. You must have known what you were doing as you knew what the impact of throwing boiling water with sugar and salt in it at close range would have on your victim.

“And what on earth possessed you to mock her afterwards and post the videos on social media? Another example of humiliating her.

“You are going to pay a heavy price for your offending and there is no alternative to custody.”

Judge Lawrie jailed Julius for nine years. He also ordered him to pay a victim surcharge £181.